I'm trying to stick to my old pattern of updating. These will keep coming at rapid speed, because I want to produce as many chapters as I can before I head back to college. Cheers!

There were few things that could scare Eleni. She'd been born in a time of unrest, her native country embroiled in a still simmering rebellion. The children of Alianne Crow were seen as easy targets by the displaced aristocrats, a way to get back at the "commoner" who had destroyed the old ways. From the moment of her birth, attempts had been made on her life. If it hadn't been for her watchful parents and Lokejo, Eleni wouldn't have stood a chance against life.

Even so, the electrum eyes that were boring into hers were more than enough to scare her. The added pressure of stronger hands over her arms and the wall digging into her back didn't help to alleviate her fears. Whenever she was in a palace room with Alexander, she instantly became a trapped mouse for him and Pier to play with. She had only escaped because she had been rescued.

With Perci gone off to be a squire to Sir Merric of Hollyrose and off to patrol the Northern borders, there was little chance that he'd come to her rescue. Eleni would have to face this battle herself. It didn't help that she'd thrown a rock at his head the last time that they had seen each other.

"What do yo-"

"Stay quiet," he ordered. Alex pushed her away from the door, a little more forcefully than necessary and stuck his head outside the door. After a few moments of silence, he closed the door and looked back at the redhead. "You know, you have a way of asking for trouble."

Indignant and proud as ever, Eleni could help rising to the challenge. "And you have a way of manhandling me, Tirragen."

"Now, now, kitten," he began. Though he seemed genuine, the quick tap on the head that he gave her reminded Eleni of whom she was dealing with. "I was only trying to help you." The small smile he wore said otherwise.

"I don't believe you."

He let out an overdramatic sigh. He would have made a decent player if he hadn't been born Noble. "No one ever does. I suppose there would be no point in asking you to trust me either? No, I guessed as much." He gave her a second tap on the head and headed for the door. "Do me a favor, though, stay in here for a few minutes."

Despite much grumbling on her part, Eleni stayed put and waited like he asked. The worst that could happen was that he brought back Pier and they tried to gang up on her. For some reason that she couldn't name, Eleni was quite sure that Alex wouldn't do that. Though he aggravated her to no end and mercilessly teased her, with the exception of a single instance, he had never tried to really harm her.

A shriek from down the hallway brought Eleni out of her thoughts. Pier had been down the hall, no doubt waiting for some unsuspecting prey, probably Eleni. Despite his cool exterior, Alex was trying to protect her from Pier; perhaps he was capable of redemption after all. No one would believe her, but in time the others would see it for themselves.

Ten minutes passed before Eleni left the room, but now the halls had darkened even more, and she sped up to reach her room before other surprises jumped out at her. She had almost made it to her door, her hand was already outstretched, and then she was slammed against the chilled stone floor.

A mop of poorly-cut dark brown hair was all that Eleni could see from her point of view on the floor, but she already knew who it was that was keeping her down. This bear hug was the work of one page alone, and it was only a matter of time before she had to keep to the promise she had made at the end of Spring. With a partially controlled hit to the side, she got the boy off her torso. A yelp followed shortly.

With his big hazel-green eyes, Kyle looked as much of a lost puppy as he ever had. Eleni couldn't stay angry at the boy, but she was confused. She knew that he had stayed in the palace over the summer with Sir Nealan's family, but the boy had been too terrified to even say goodbye.

I guess that a few weeks without me made those fears disappear, she though wryly. So much for me scaring off the duckling.

Eleni didn't bother getting off the floor. "What can I help you with, Kyle?" This was probably going to be a request to remember Lady Knight Kel's words to care for her son. "Anything interesting you wanted to say?" she couldn't help the sarcasm that escaped, it was her only defense in the palace sometimes.

Her words had an effect on the poor boy, his face ashened and then flushed. Finally realizing what his overzealous actions had resulted in, Kyle stuttered an apology while overing Eleni a hand.

"Forgive me, Myles," he stammered out. "I was just so happy that you finally returned, but you weren't in your room. Your, um, friend was, though." Eleni cracked a smile at he thought of Lokejo answering the door to see Kyle standing on the other side. "He said that you'd be back soon, so I decided to wait."

It took Eleni only a few seconds to feel guilty about having left the boy waiting for so long. She hadn't thought that anyone else would want to see her upon her return. Assuming that Kyle would be entertained by his family, she hadn't considered even visiting him.

"No worries," she told the hyperventilating boy in kneeling in front of her. "I apologize, too. I was having a chat with my grandfather."

"I'm sorry for knocking you down," he mumbled again. She shook her head at his puppy-like innocence. The boy was kind, and she hoped that he managed to keep his purity intact throughout his training. "Really, I'll apologize as many times as I need to!"

"Hush now, Kyle." Eleni led the taller boy to her door and from her tunic pulled out a key that was hanging on a chain. "Have one of the maids asked if you wanted a magicked lock for your door?" she asked as she unlocked her door. At the boy's perplexed look, she elaborated. Eleni herded him into her room and explained, "The maids asked Lokejo if I wanted my lock magicked just in case."

"In case of what?" Kyle's voice had become a whisper as he saw the giant Raka sitting at the desk. "Why magic the door at all?"

Eleni sat down on her bed and patted the space beside her. "Because of whom I am, because of who my grandmother is." Lokejo noticed that he was making the young boy nervous and twitchy and excused himself. "Not everyone appreciates what our female relatives have done, you know."

Kyle nodded in agreement. "I know," he whispered. "I don't want to be a tattletale - Mother said that I shouldn't be one - but I can tell you, right?"

"Of course," was the easy reply. Eleni respected how strong the boy was trying to be, and it almost reminded her of her little brothers back on the Islands. "Who did what and when?" She already had an inkling as to the 'who' but Eleni was going to let him say it for himself.

"Well," he couldn't say it. "I don't want to be-"

"Either you tell me what Pierina did," she ground out, closing her eyes in annoyance. "Or I will go on assumptions and then things will not be pretty." She opened a single eye and watched the boy's reaction. "Come on, Masbolle, tell me already."

"All right, Myles."

After a shockingly detailed and intricate description of the hazing he had suffered, Eleni had to say that even she was shocked by what Pier had grown capable of. Surely Kyle had to be exaggerating, but a part of her knew that the boy was honest to a fault. Every word out of his mouth was the truth, and it scared her.

Pierina of Stone Mountain had become even more of a monster, and she had developed a taste for blood.

Did we enjoy that? I promise that the details of poor Kyle's suffering will be revealed later, but know that it was just awful. Remember that your reviews inspire me, and that I appreciate every single one!